Mathematical analysis of bioelectrochemical systems

生物电化学系统的数学分析

• 批准号: NE/R013306/1
• 负责人: Siddharth Gadkari
• 金额: $ 46.59万
• 依托单位: University of Surrey
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Fellowship
• 财政年份: 2018
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2018 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=NE%2FR013306%2F1
• 关键词: Mathematical; analysis; bioelectrochemical; systems

Significant amount of energy and billions of pounds are spent every year in UK to treat the industrial/domestic/municipal wastewater. However, this wastewater which typically contains a lot of organic compounds can actually be used as a valuable resource in devices known as bioelectrochemical systems (BESs). BES are like any other electrochemical cell (e.g. battery) and consist of an anode, cathode and a separating membrane (optional), but the difference lies in how the electrochemical reaction is catalysed. In BES, at least one or both of the electrode reactions are catalysed with the help of microorganisms. By combining living biological systems with electrochemistry, BES makes it possible to utilize the chemical energy from wastewater and generate electricity (microbial fuel cells, MFCs), hydrogen (microbial electrolysis cells, MECs) or value-added chemicals (microbial electrosynthesis, MES). Among different BESs, a microbial electrosynthesis (MES) system in which both electrodes are biocatalysed, makes it possible to convert wastewater (fed at the bio-anode) and waste CO2 (fed at the bio-cathode) into useful multi-carbon compounds that are precursors to commodity chemicals and transportation fuels. Such MES systems are thus of particular interest in the context of both wastewater treatment as well as CO2 capture and utilization. The electrochemical reaction in MES is however non-spontaneous and requires external energy. Renewable energy sources (solar, wind) can be used to supply the required power. Thus MES also offers a novel way to store the renewable electrical energy in the chemical bonds of organic compounds that can be stored and transported more easily. MES system performance depends on a number of biological, physical-chemical and electrochemical parameters. Following the first experimental demonstration in 2009-2010, a variety of studies have been conducted to investigate the effect of operational parameters on MES performance. These investigations have helped in improving the product yields however further improvements in performance require a deeper understanding of the mechanisms governing the process.Past research on MES has extensively focused on experimental studies, while mathematical modelling has remain neglected. The development of mathematical models will be critical to the optimization and scaling of MES systems in future. At present, there are no mathematical models available to predict the overall performance of the MES process. In this project I propose to develop comprehensive mathematical models that can not only provide insight on the governing mechanisms of MES but also on how MES systems will affect the environment. Such numerical models will compliment experiments and help to develop this technology towards commercialisation at a reduced cost and time. Development of efficient MES systems that use low-grade substrates such as wastewater and waste CO2 for chemical production provide a new technology platform for sustainable bioproduction and wastewater treatment. Such systems can help tackle environment and energy challenges in an integrated approach. Bioproduction of chemicals by consuming CO2 will also reduce the dependency on fossil fuel based carbon sources currently used in chemical industries and can assist the UK in achieving its climate targets. Thus in addition to the economic and ecological benefits, research on MES is also of major societal importance. Though the proposed research is focused on MES systems, the insight obtained from these models will also be applicable for analogous bioelectrochemical systems such as microbial fuel cells and microbial electrolysis cells. Thus the research outcomes will contribute directly towards popularizing such sustainable technologies for bioproduction of wide range of chemicals (MES, MEC) as well as generation of renewable electricity (MFC) from wastewater.

英国每年花费大量能源和数十亿英镑来处理工业/生活/市政废水。然而，这种通常含有大量有机化合物的废水实际上可以用作生物电化学系统（BES）设备中的宝贵资源。 BES 与任何其他电化学电池（例如电池组）一样，由阳极、阴极和隔膜（可选）组成，但不同之处在于电化学反应的催化方式。在 BES 中，至少一个或两个电极反应是在微生物的帮助下催化的。通过将活生物系统与电化学相结合，BES 可以利用废水中的化学能来发电（微生物燃料电池，MFC）、氢气（微生物电解电池，MEC）或增值化学品（微生物电合成，MES）。在不同的 BES 中，两个电极均被生物催化的微生物电合成 (MES) 系统可以将废水（在生物阳极供给）和废二氧化碳（在生物阴极供给）转化为有用的多碳化合物，这些化合物是商品化学品和运输燃料的前体。因此，此类 MES 系统在废水处理以及二氧化碳捕获和利用方面特别受关注。然而，MES 中的电化学反应不是自发的，需要外部能量。可再生能源（太阳能、风能）可用于提供所需的电力。因此，MES 还提供了一种将可再生电能存储在有机化合物的化学键中的新方法，可以更轻松地存储和运输。 MES 系统的性能取决于许多生物、物理化学和电化学参数。继 2009-2010 年首次实验演示之后，开展了各种研究来调查操作参数对 MES 性能的影响。这些研究有助于提高产品产量，但性能的进一步提高需要更深入地了解控制过程的机制。过去对 MES 的研究广泛集中在实验研究上，而数学建模仍然被忽视。数学模型的发展对于未来 MES 系统的优化和扩展至关重要。目前，还没有可用的数学模型来预测MES流程的整体性能。在这个项目中，我建议开发全面的数学模型，不仅可以深入了解 MES 的治理机制，还可以了解 MES 系统如何影响环境。这种数值模型将补充实验，并有助于以更低的成本和时间将这项技术推向商业化。开发使用废水和废二氧化碳等低品位底物进行化学生产的高效 MES 系统，为可持续生物生产和废水处理提供了新技术平台。此类系统可以帮助以综合方法应对环境和能源挑战。通过消耗二氧化碳进行化学品的生物生产还将减少对目前化学工业中使用的基于化石燃料的碳源的依赖，并可以帮助英国实现其气候目标。因此，除了经济和生态效益外，MES的研究也具有重要的社会意义。尽管拟议的研究重点是 MES 系统，但从这些模型中获得的见解也适用于类似的生物电化学系统，例如微生物燃料电池和微生物电解电池。因此，研究成果将直接有助于推广此类可持续技术，用于多种化学品的生物生产（MES、MEC）以及从废水中产生可再生电力（MFC）。

项目成果

Influence of temperature and other system parameters on microbial fuel cell performance: Numerical and experimental investigation

• DOI: 10.1016/j.cej.2020.124176
• 发表时间: 2020-05-15
• 期刊: CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
• 影响因子: 15.1
• 作者: Gadkari, Siddharth;Fontmorin, Jean-Marie;Sadhukhan, Jhuma
• 通讯作者: Sadhukhan, Jhuma

Microbial fuel cells: A fast converging dynamic model for assessing system performance based on bioanode kinetics

• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijhydene.2019.04.065
• 发表时间: 2019-06-07
• 期刊: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HYDROGEN ENERGY
• 影响因子: 7.2
• 作者: Gadkari, Siddharth;Shemfe, Mobolaji;Sadhukhan, Jhuma
• 通讯作者: Sadhukhan, Jhuma

Microbial electrosynthesis: is it sustainable for bioproduction of acetic acid?

• DOI: 10.1039/d1ra00920f
• 发表时间: 2021-03-05
• 期刊: RSC advances
• 影响因子: 3.9
• 作者: Gadkari S;Mirza Beigi BH;Aryal N;Sadhukhan J
• 通讯作者: Sadhukhan J

Two-dimensional mathematical model of an air-cathode microbial fuel cell with graphite fiber brush anode

• DOI: 10.1016/j.jpowsour.2019.227145
• 发表时间: 2019-11
• 期刊: Journal of Power Sources
• 影响因子: 9.2
• 作者: Siddharth Gadkari;S. Gu;J. Sadhukhan